Tax Deductions You Can Claim Without Receipts
The ATO's $300 no-receipt rule, the $150 laundry limit, award transport payments, and what records still count as proof.
Lost or faded receipts don't automatically kill your claim. The ATO has rules that let you claim certain work expenses as deductions — costs subtracted from your taxable income — without a receipt for every item. But they're much narrower than the pub-talk version, and getting them wrong is a fast way onto the ATO's radar.
Here's what you can genuinely claim receipt-free, and what proof you still need.
The $300 handshake rule
If your total work-related expense claim is $300 or less, you don't need receipts. Note the word total — it's $300 across all your work expenses combined, not per item or per category.
No receipts doesn't mean no proof. You still must have actually spent the money, it has to relate to earning your income, and you need to explain how you worked out the amount if the ATO asks.
It's a record-keeping shortcut, not a free $300. A suspiciously round $300 claim is exactly the pattern the ATO's data matching — its system for cross-checking your return against info from banks, employers and platforms — is built to spot.
🚨The trap
The $300 rule waives receipts, not reality. Claim it without having spent it and you're volunteering for an audit, where the ATO combs through your return line by line.
The $150 laundry bonus round
You can claim up to $150 for washing, drying or ironing eligible work clothing — uniforms, occupation-specific clothes (a chef's checked pants), or protective gear — with no written proof at all.
The ATO's accepted rates: $1 per load when it's all work clothing, or 50 cents per load when it's mixed with your regular washing.
The $150 laundry allowance sits outside the $300 rule, so you can stack them. But it only covers genuinely claimable clothing — your everyday office outfit doesn't qualify.
The 1986 time capsule: award transport payments
Some people get an award transport payment — a travel allowance paid under an industrial award, the legal rulebook that sets pay and conditions for a whole industry. If that's you, you can claim transport costs up to that allowance without receipts.
It mostly applies in industries where the award has covered transport allowances since before 29 October 1986. Not sure if yours qualifies? Check your award or ask payroll.
Claim even a dollar more than the award amount and the normal proof rules apply — receipts required for the whole lot.
Plot twist: your bank statement is a receipt
A "receipt" doesn't have to be paper. Bank and card statements, invoices, emails and photos of receipts all count, as long as they show who you paid, the amount, the date and what you bought.
The ATO's free myDeductions tool inside the ATO app lets you snap receipts and log expenses all year, then pour the lot straight into your tax return.
Records generally need to be kept for five years from when you lodge — ATO-speak for officially sending in your return.
Play it smart, not lucky
The no-receipt rules cap you at small numbers. If you actually spend more than $300 on work costs — likely if you have work-from-home costs, tools or subscriptions — keeping records means claiming more.
Run your numbers through our Deduction Estimator to see what a proper claim could add to your refund.
⚡Quick win
Photograph every work receipt the moment you get it. Thirty seconds now beats piecing together a year of spending from bank statements next July.
FAQ
Can I just claim $300 without spending anything?
No. The $300 rule only removes the need for receipts — you still have to have genuinely spent the money on work-related costs and be able to explain how you worked out the claim if the ATO asks.
Is the $150 laundry claim on top of the $300 rule?
Yes, they stack. Laundry costs up to $150 sit outside the $300 no-receipt limit, so you can claim both — but only for eligible work clothing like uniforms and protective gear.
Do bank statements count as proof of an expense?
Often, yes. A bank or card statement can back up a claim if it shows who you paid, the date and the amount — though a receipt or invoice showing exactly what you bought is stronger proof.
Run your own numbers
Sources: figures checked against ATO published rates and thresholds for FY2025-26 at the review date. See how we check our numbers.
⚠️ General information only — not tax or financial advice. Figures relate to FY2025-26 unless stated otherwise.